Does the Attorney General have the power to appeal against a finding that a defendant concealed a firearm in his shirt during a robbery?

Defendants did not object to the instruction requested by the prosecutor. The Attorney General argues the failure to object forfeited the issue on appeal. We find the instruction affected defendants' substantial rights and the failure to object does not preclude them from raising the issue here. (People v. Valdez (2012) 55 Cal.4th 82, 151.)

The language in the instruction appears to have been inspired by the opinion in People v. Monjares (2008) 164 Cal.App.4th 1432, 1437. In Monjares, the defendant lifted his shirt during a robbery, revealing the handle of a black pistol. The jury convicted him of the robbery and found he personally used a firearm in the commission of the robbery. (Id. at p. 1434.) On appeal he contended the evidence did not support the true finding because the victim could not say whether the pistol in defendant's waistband was real, fake, or a toy. (Id. at p. 1435.)